Renewable energy remains the fastest growing sector in the energy industry. Some observers expect it to account for 70% of the new power generation capacity added globally between now and 2030. And as part of a wider program to help mitigate climate change, the International Finance Corporation, the private-sector investment arm of the World Bank, is looking actively in the Middle East for potential investments to boost its renewable energy portfolio.

Dimitris Tsitsiragos, IFC’s vice president for Europe, Central Asia, and MENA talks to The Wall Street Journal about the IFC’s renewable investments gives his outlook for the sector.

WSJ: What is your most prominent renewables investment in the region?

Mr. Tsitsiragos: Our most prominent investment in the MENA region is the 117-megawatt plant in the southern governorate of Tafila in Jordan. It is the first privately-owned wind farm in the country and we put together a $221 million financing package for the project. It is part of a memorandum of understanding we signed with Abu Dhabi’s Masdar to support investments in renewables globally and in MENA for up to $1.5 billion. We are also looking at other opportunities with them in the Gulf and we are also working on Morocco’s first concentrated solar power plant.

WSJ: How much does renewables represent in your power investment portfolio?

Mr. Tsitsiragos: There is a bit of corporate target that we have in mind and in that corporate target we want to have about 15% of our projects in the area of climate change, which includes renewables. In the power space there is a strong focus on renewables. IFC has committed over $10 billion in the power sector and out of that $3.435 billion are in renewable energy. This is a quite important number and we want to do more in that space since this is a space that one can invest in profitably. A good example is to look at the cost of thermal power in Jordan today the cost in Tafila, which is about 30-40% cheaper. That will give you a good idea of the economics of the investment.

WSJ: How much have you committed in terms of investments for renewable investments in the region?

Mr. Tsitsiragos: Just over $200 million invested by IFC in MENA since July 2008. In addition, IFC has helped mobilize an additional $300 million towards renewable energy in MENA over the last 18 months. We see renewables as an opportunity in this region and also we see a tremendous opportunity here when it comes to energy efficiency. The region has potential in wind and solar energy and there is also some potential in hydro, but that’s more challenging. We want to promote these potentials and that’s why we are engaged in solar in Morocco and that’s why we are looking at wind and solar in Jordan. We also think that Egypt has a big potential in wind. These are oil importers but you also have the oil exporters that see that renewables should be part of their energy generation base like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and they are taking the lead in areas like wind and solar.

WSJ: Which country has the most potential for renewable investment?

Mr. Tsitsiragos: If you look at the numbers, there is a tremendous potential Saudi Arabia. They are talking about installing 54 gigawatts of renewable power capacity by 2032. Egypt is also talking about making renewables account for 20% of the electricity production.

WSJ: Do you see countries in the region meeting the target they announced for renewable energy?

Mr. Tsitsiragos: I cannot make a prediction on that, but I can say that it is very positive that they have renewables on their agenda and they are paying attention to them.

WSJ: Are you concerned that investments in renewable energy have dropped in the last couple of years?

Mr. Tsitsiragos: That was one of the concerns one has. The overall economic situation has impacted investments in this space. In the long term, in some places like MENA or some emerging markets this is a profitable business at least that our experience and from that point of view investments will continue coming in, especially due to growing demand for power.